Halal Travel Guide: Kairouan, Tunisia - Great Mosque and Jumu'ah (Part 1)
Reposted from the web
Summary: This first part follows a visit to the Great Mosque of Kairouan for Jumu'ah in one of Tunisia's most important Islamic cities. It keeps the original prayer experience, mosque history, photographs, and travel details for readers interested in Muslim heritage in North Africa.
On Friday, we left from the Louage station south of Sousse and reached Kairouan, the most important ancient city in Tunisia, in just one hour. The Louage station in Kairouan is on the west side of the city, but you can ask the driver to drop you off right at the gate of the Great Mosque of Kairouan.
When we arrived at the Great Mosque at twelve o'clock, it was already closed. A young man at the gate told us that other mosques in Kairouan hold Jumu'ah prayer at one o'clock, but only the Great Mosque holds it at three, so he suggested we come back later.
We used this time to look at the exterior of the mosque. The Great Mosque of Kairouan is the oldest and most spectacular Jumu'ah mosque in Tunisia. It was first built in 670 by order of Uqba ibn Nafi, a general of the Arab Umayyad Caliphate. It was destroyed by Christian Berbers in 690 and rebuilt by the Umayyad Caliphate in 703. As the Arab population in Tunisia grew, the number of Muslims in Kairouan increased. The Great Mosque was rebuilt and renovated many times between 724-728, 774, 836, 862-863, and 875, finally taking its current form in the 9th century.
The Great Mosque is a huge, irregular quadrilateral with a perimeter of 405 meters, looking like a fortress from the outside. The outer walls are 1.9 meters thick and built from stone, rubble, and bricks. Because the ground is quite soft, many buttresses were built on the outer walls to increase stability.
The Great Mosque has nine gates, some of which have porches and spiral-shaped domes. Bab Lalla Rihana on the southeast side was built in 1293 during the Hafsid dynasty. It features a horseshoe arch and ancient stone columns that blend perfectly with the 9th-century walls.
While waiting for Jumu'ah, we had lunch at El Brija Restaurant, located on the city wall next to the Great Mosque. The atmosphere and service were both good, and they serve traditional Tunisian food. I recommend eating here when visiting the Great Mosque.
We ordered a traditional appetizer platter and a mixed couscous stew. When eating at a proper restaurant in Tunisia, you really only need to order the main course, as most places provide side dishes and bread.
Our appetizer platter included Tunisian salad, Houria carrot salad, and Mechouia green pepper salad. We ate these three dishes almost every day in Tunisia. Tunisian salad is made of diced cucumbers, tomatoes, and onions mixed with olive oil, topped with boiled eggs and tuna. Mechouia salad contains green peppers, tomatoes, onions, garlic, and more. Tunisians love it, and it is rich in vitamins and very healthy. The couscous stew was very rich, containing lamb, Merguez sausage, chicken, beef, dried fruits, and preserved fruits. The Merguez sausage is seasoned with cumin and chili, making it very flavorful.
After the meal, we were served mint tea and Makroudh dessert. Makroudh is a classic North African Maghreb snack for breaking the fast. It is made of semolina on the outside, filled with date paste and dried fruits, then baked and soaked in syrup.
We returned to the Great Mosque after two o'clock, and people were already entering the prayer hall. Once inside the courtyard, the first thing you see is the oldest minaret (bangke ta) still in existence today. The minaret of the Great Mosque of Kairouan was built between the 8th and 9th centuries. The current structure mostly dates back to 836. It is one of the three most important early minarets, alongside the spiral minaret of the Great Mosque of Samarra in Iraq, built between 848 and 852, and the spiral minaret of the Abu Dulaf Mosque in Iraq, built in 859. These three served as models for later minarets across Andalusia and the Maghreb.
There were no minarets during the time of the Prophet and the four Caliphs. People called for prayer (adhan) from the mosque entrance or the roof. Platforms for calling the adhan appeared during the Umayyad dynasty in the 7th century, but true minarets did not emerge until the Abbasid dynasty in the 8th century. There is no final conclusion on the origin of the minaret. Some say it mimics the towers of Syrian churches, while others suggest it was inspired by the Lighthouse of Alexandria or Mesopotamian ziggurats. Four towers were built during the reconstruction of the Sacred Mosque in Mecca in the late 8th century, but they have not survived. The earliest surviving minarets are the one at the Great Mosque of Kairouan and the two in Iraq. The Bride's Minaret at the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus may also date to the 9th century, but there is no clear record of this.
The minaret of the Great Mosque of Kairouan is 31.5 meters tall. Its base dates back to the Umayyad period in 725, and you can see Latin inscriptions from the Roman era on the walls. The first and second levels of the minaret were built in 836 using carefully cut stone. The side facing the courtyard has windows, while the other three sides have arrow slits. The third level of the minaret is a four-arched structure (chahartaq), which was likely added later.
Three sides of the Great Mosque are surrounded by double-row horseshoe-shaped arcades. The columns come from various ancient Roman and Byzantine ruins, including some from the famous site of Carthage.
There is a dome above the main entrance of the prayer hall and another above the mihrab. These domes, built in 836, are important examples of early mosque domes.
The prayer hall connects to the arcades through 17 carved wooden doors. The most beautiful one in the center was built in 1828 and features rich geometric and floral patterns.
The mihrab of the Great Mosque is 5.1 meters high. It was built in 863 and is the oldest concave mihrab in the world. The main body of the mihrab is a horseshoe arch supported by two red marble columns. The columns have Byzantine-style capitals with very fine carvings.
The upper part of the mihrab features 139 iridescent ceramic tiles fired in the second half of the 9th century. This metallic-lustre glazed pottery originated in Abbasid-ruled Iraq and was traded throughout West Asia and North Africa. It is not yet certain whether the iridescent tiles of the Great Mosque of Kairouan were fired in Iraq or if Iraqi craftsmen were invited to Kairouan to make them.
The concave center of the upper part is made of painted wood, featuring complex vine patterns in yellow on a blue background. The lower part is inlaid with 28 white marble slabs carved with complex floral and geometric patterns, including stylized grape leaves, flowers, and shells.
Next to the mihrab are the pulpit (minbar) for the Friday sermon and the enclosure (maqsurah) used by kings and nobles.
The minbar of the Great Mosque of Kairouan was also built in 863 and is the oldest surviving minbar in the world. The minbar is made of teak imported from India and is assembled from over 300 wooden panels carved with floral and geometric patterns. Although it was restored in the early 20th century, all but nine of the wooden panels are original pieces from over a thousand years ago. Today, the sides of the minbar are protected by glass, making it difficult to take photos due to the reflection.
The maksura at the Great Mosque of Kairouan was built in the first half of the 11th century. It is the oldest maksura in the world still in use. The maksura at the Great Mosque of Cordoba in Spain was built in 965, but it is no longer used today. The maksura is made of cedar and is 14 meters long. It is carved with ornate Kufic calligraphy and floral patterns, representing the highest achievement in Tunisian carving art at that time.
The maksura originated during the time of Caliph Uthman in the mid-7th century. After Caliph Umar was assassinated inside the prayer hall, Uthman built a partition wall inside the hall to protect himself. Later, mosques where the Caliph resided would all have a maksura built inside.
The prayer hall of the Great Mosque of Kairouan is 70.6 meters wide and 37.5 meters deep. It consists of 17 aisles, with the aisle directly facing the mihrab being the tallest and widest. This layout was later adopted by major mosques across the Maghreb and Andalusia.
There are 414 stone columns inside the prayer hall. They are made of marble, granite, and porphyry, with capitals in styles including Corinthian, Ionic, and Composite. Some capitals were carved specifically for the prayer hall, while many others came from ancient Roman, Phoenician, and Byzantine sites in Tunisia, including the famous ancient city of Carthage.
The door inside the prayer hall's maksura is decorated with marble floral carvings. This door leads to the library behind the qibla wall, which is also where the imam usually stays. The imam only comes out from here to lead the prayer and deliver the khutbah.
The grand scene of Jumu'ah at the Great Mosque of Kairouan. After the adhan is finished, the imam slowly walks up the minbar to begin the khutbah. In Arabic-speaking regions, everyone understands the khutbah, so there is no sermon session beforehand.
Tunisia follows the Maliki school of thought. Their namaz movements are quite similar to our Hanafi school, including the initial takbir, but the main difference is that they also fold their arms when making intention.
After the prayer, we stood for janazah outside the prayer hall door. Because Jumu'ah was at three o'clock, we immediately returned to the prayer hall to perform Dhuhr after finishing.
From the 9th to the 11th century, the Great Mosque of Kairouan was the academic center for the entire Maghreb region and the Maliki school. to religious courses, it offered subjects like mathematics, astronomy, medicine, and botany. In 1045, the Zirid dynasty court in Kairouan announced its conversion to Sunni Islam. Upon hearing this, the Shi'a Fatimid dynasty in Egypt sent a group of Arab tribes to invade Kairouan. In 1057, these Arab tribes occupied and destroyed Kairouan. The Great Mosque of Kairouan declined from then on and did not slowly recover until after the 13th century.
After leaving the Great Mosque of Kairouan, we started exploring the ancient medina of Kairouan. Besides the Great Mosque, the other ancient mosque remaining in Kairouan is the Mosque of the Three Doors (Masjid al-Thalathat Abwab), built in 866. This mosque has the oldest decorated facade of any religious building in the world.
Today, only the facade of the Mosque of the Three Doors retains its 9th-century appearance, while the minaret next to it was added in 1440. The gate of the Mosque of the Three Doors consists of three horseshoe arches and features four ancient stone columns. The arch is carved with floral patterns and Kufic calligraphy, which includes verses from the Quran and the name of the builder, Muhammad ibn Khairun. Muhammad ibn Khairun was a scholar and merchant from Andalusia who traveled through Iraq and Egypt to reach Kairouan, Tunisia. When the minaret was added in 1440, the original 9th-century inscriptions were rearranged to make room for the new text.
In the northwest of the Kairouan Medina stands an important tomb for Sidi Sahib, a companion of the Prophet and his barber, which is why it is also called the Barber Mosque.
Legend says Sidi Sahib died in a battle in 654 and was buried here. By the 11th century, this place had become a famous holy site, and the tomb shrine (gongbei) was built in the 14th century. The Bey of Tunis, Hammuda Pasha (reigned 1631-66), expanded the tomb significantly in 1629 and built a new main hall. Another Bey, Mohamed (reigned 1675-96), built the minaret and a religious school (madrasa) between 1690 and 1695. Since the 19th century, the tomb of Sidi Sahib has undergone several renovations, but it still keeps its 17th-century architectural style.
The tomb of Sidi Sahib in Kairouan blends Andalusian, Italian Renaissance, and local Kairouan architectural styles. The interior features many classic 17th-century Tunisian Qallalin tiles and rich plaster carvings.
At the minaret, gate, and main hall of the Sidi Sahib tomb in Kairouan, an old man in the courtyard pours perfume into the hands of every visitor (dosti) who comes to pay their respects.
The Sidi Abid al-Ghariani school (madrasa) and shrine (zawiya) inside the Kairouan Medina were founded in the 14th century and expanded significantly in the 17th century. Abid al-Ghariani was a scholar, and his teacher, Al-Jadidi, was a famous judge in Kairouan. Al-Jadidi passed away in 1384 while on the Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca. Abid al-Ghariani took over his teacher's role to continue teaching in Kairouan, and after he died in 1402, he was buried next to the school.
Besides Abid al-Ghariani, the Hafsid dynasty Caliph Moulay Hasan (reigned 1526-1543) is also buried here. In 1534, the famous pirate Barbarossa led a fleet to invade Tunisia. Moulay Hasan eventually took back Tunisia with the help of the Holy Roman Empire, but he had to sign a treaty to become a vassal of Spain. In 1542, while Moulay Hasan was traveling to Italy to collect weapons and ammunition, his son usurped the throne, and he was eventually exiled. He lived in Naples and Sicily for several years and later met with the Holy Roman Emperor and the Pope, becoming the most well-known Arab monarch to Europeans of that era.
The city walls and gates of the Kairouan Medina.
Kairouan was founded in 670 by the Arab Umayyad general Uqba ibn Nafi, who chose the site to serve as a military base for the Arab conquest of Tunisia. Over the next hundred years, the Berbers launched wave after wave of uprisings against the Arabs. After surviving many attacks, Kairouan was finally captured by the Berbers in 745 and was not retaken until the end of the 8th century.
Summary: This first part follows a visit to the Great Mosque of Kairouan for Jumu'ah in one of Tunisia's most important Islamic cities. It keeps the original prayer experience, mosque history, photographs, and travel details for readers interested in Muslim heritage in North Africa.
On Friday, we left from the Louage station south of Sousse and reached Kairouan, the most important ancient city in Tunisia, in just one hour. The Louage station in Kairouan is on the west side of the city, but you can ask the driver to drop you off right at the gate of the Great Mosque of Kairouan.
When we arrived at the Great Mosque at twelve o'clock, it was already closed. A young man at the gate told us that other mosques in Kairouan hold Jumu'ah prayer at one o'clock, but only the Great Mosque holds it at three, so he suggested we come back later.
We used this time to look at the exterior of the mosque. The Great Mosque of Kairouan is the oldest and most spectacular Jumu'ah mosque in Tunisia. It was first built in 670 by order of Uqba ibn Nafi, a general of the Arab Umayyad Caliphate. It was destroyed by Christian Berbers in 690 and rebuilt by the Umayyad Caliphate in 703. As the Arab population in Tunisia grew, the number of Muslims in Kairouan increased. The Great Mosque was rebuilt and renovated many times between 724-728, 774, 836, 862-863, and 875, finally taking its current form in the 9th century.
The Great Mosque is a huge, irregular quadrilateral with a perimeter of 405 meters, looking like a fortress from the outside. The outer walls are 1.9 meters thick and built from stone, rubble, and bricks. Because the ground is quite soft, many buttresses were built on the outer walls to increase stability.
The Great Mosque has nine gates, some of which have porches and spiral-shaped domes. Bab Lalla Rihana on the southeast side was built in 1293 during the Hafsid dynasty. It features a horseshoe arch and ancient stone columns that blend perfectly with the 9th-century walls.
While waiting for Jumu'ah, we had lunch at El Brija Restaurant, located on the city wall next to the Great Mosque. The atmosphere and service were both good, and they serve traditional Tunisian food. I recommend eating here when visiting the Great Mosque.
We ordered a traditional appetizer platter and a mixed couscous stew. When eating at a proper restaurant in Tunisia, you really only need to order the main course, as most places provide side dishes and bread.
Our appetizer platter included Tunisian salad, Houria carrot salad, and Mechouia green pepper salad. We ate these three dishes almost every day in Tunisia. Tunisian salad is made of diced cucumbers, tomatoes, and onions mixed with olive oil, topped with boiled eggs and tuna. Mechouia salad contains green peppers, tomatoes, onions, garlic, and more. Tunisians love it, and it is rich in vitamins and very healthy. The couscous stew was very rich, containing lamb, Merguez sausage, chicken, beef, dried fruits, and preserved fruits. The Merguez sausage is seasoned with cumin and chili, making it very flavorful.
After the meal, we were served mint tea and Makroudh dessert. Makroudh is a classic North African Maghreb snack for breaking the fast. It is made of semolina on the outside, filled with date paste and dried fruits, then baked and soaked in syrup.
We returned to the Great Mosque after two o'clock, and people were already entering the prayer hall. Once inside the courtyard, the first thing you see is the oldest minaret (bangke ta) still in existence today. The minaret of the Great Mosque of Kairouan was built between the 8th and 9th centuries. The current structure mostly dates back to 836. It is one of the three most important early minarets, alongside the spiral minaret of the Great Mosque of Samarra in Iraq, built between 848 and 852, and the spiral minaret of the Abu Dulaf Mosque in Iraq, built in 859. These three served as models for later minarets across Andalusia and the Maghreb.
There were no minarets during the time of the Prophet and the four Caliphs. People called for prayer (adhan) from the mosque entrance or the roof. Platforms for calling the adhan appeared during the Umayyad dynasty in the 7th century, but true minarets did not emerge until the Abbasid dynasty in the 8th century. There is no final conclusion on the origin of the minaret. Some say it mimics the towers of Syrian churches, while others suggest it was inspired by the Lighthouse of Alexandria or Mesopotamian ziggurats. Four towers were built during the reconstruction of the Sacred Mosque in Mecca in the late 8th century, but they have not survived. The earliest surviving minarets are the one at the Great Mosque of Kairouan and the two in Iraq. The Bride's Minaret at the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus may also date to the 9th century, but there is no clear record of this.
The minaret of the Great Mosque of Kairouan is 31.5 meters tall. Its base dates back to the Umayyad period in 725, and you can see Latin inscriptions from the Roman era on the walls. The first and second levels of the minaret were built in 836 using carefully cut stone. The side facing the courtyard has windows, while the other three sides have arrow slits. The third level of the minaret is a four-arched structure (chahartaq), which was likely added later.
Three sides of the Great Mosque are surrounded by double-row horseshoe-shaped arcades. The columns come from various ancient Roman and Byzantine ruins, including some from the famous site of Carthage.
There is a dome above the main entrance of the prayer hall and another above the mihrab. These domes, built in 836, are important examples of early mosque domes.
The prayer hall connects to the arcades through 17 carved wooden doors. The most beautiful one in the center was built in 1828 and features rich geometric and floral patterns.
The mihrab of the Great Mosque is 5.1 meters high. It was built in 863 and is the oldest concave mihrab in the world. The main body of the mihrab is a horseshoe arch supported by two red marble columns. The columns have Byzantine-style capitals with very fine carvings.
The upper part of the mihrab features 139 iridescent ceramic tiles fired in the second half of the 9th century. This metallic-lustre glazed pottery originated in Abbasid-ruled Iraq and was traded throughout West Asia and North Africa. It is not yet certain whether the iridescent tiles of the Great Mosque of Kairouan were fired in Iraq or if Iraqi craftsmen were invited to Kairouan to make them.
The concave center of the upper part is made of painted wood, featuring complex vine patterns in yellow on a blue background. The lower part is inlaid with 28 white marble slabs carved with complex floral and geometric patterns, including stylized grape leaves, flowers, and shells.
Next to the mihrab are the pulpit (minbar) for the Friday sermon and the enclosure (maqsurah) used by kings and nobles.
The minbar of the Great Mosque of Kairouan was also built in 863 and is the oldest surviving minbar in the world. The minbar is made of teak imported from India and is assembled from over 300 wooden panels carved with floral and geometric patterns. Although it was restored in the early 20th century, all but nine of the wooden panels are original pieces from over a thousand years ago. Today, the sides of the minbar are protected by glass, making it difficult to take photos due to the reflection.
The maksura at the Great Mosque of Kairouan was built in the first half of the 11th century. It is the oldest maksura in the world still in use. The maksura at the Great Mosque of Cordoba in Spain was built in 965, but it is no longer used today. The maksura is made of cedar and is 14 meters long. It is carved with ornate Kufic calligraphy and floral patterns, representing the highest achievement in Tunisian carving art at that time.
The maksura originated during the time of Caliph Uthman in the mid-7th century. After Caliph Umar was assassinated inside the prayer hall, Uthman built a partition wall inside the hall to protect himself. Later, mosques where the Caliph resided would all have a maksura built inside.
The prayer hall of the Great Mosque of Kairouan is 70.6 meters wide and 37.5 meters deep. It consists of 17 aisles, with the aisle directly facing the mihrab being the tallest and widest. This layout was later adopted by major mosques across the Maghreb and Andalusia.
There are 414 stone columns inside the prayer hall. They are made of marble, granite, and porphyry, with capitals in styles including Corinthian, Ionic, and Composite. Some capitals were carved specifically for the prayer hall, while many others came from ancient Roman, Phoenician, and Byzantine sites in Tunisia, including the famous ancient city of Carthage.
The door inside the prayer hall's maksura is decorated with marble floral carvings. This door leads to the library behind the qibla wall, which is also where the imam usually stays. The imam only comes out from here to lead the prayer and deliver the khutbah.
The grand scene of Jumu'ah at the Great Mosque of Kairouan. After the adhan is finished, the imam slowly walks up the minbar to begin the khutbah. In Arabic-speaking regions, everyone understands the khutbah, so there is no sermon session beforehand.
Tunisia follows the Maliki school of thought. Their namaz movements are quite similar to our Hanafi school, including the initial takbir, but the main difference is that they also fold their arms when making intention.
After the prayer, we stood for janazah outside the prayer hall door. Because Jumu'ah was at three o'clock, we immediately returned to the prayer hall to perform Dhuhr after finishing.
From the 9th to the 11th century, the Great Mosque of Kairouan was the academic center for the entire Maghreb region and the Maliki school. to religious courses, it offered subjects like mathematics, astronomy, medicine, and botany. In 1045, the Zirid dynasty court in Kairouan announced its conversion to Sunni Islam. Upon hearing this, the Shi'a Fatimid dynasty in Egypt sent a group of Arab tribes to invade Kairouan. In 1057, these Arab tribes occupied and destroyed Kairouan. The Great Mosque of Kairouan declined from then on and did not slowly recover until after the 13th century.
After leaving the Great Mosque of Kairouan, we started exploring the ancient medina of Kairouan. Besides the Great Mosque, the other ancient mosque remaining in Kairouan is the Mosque of the Three Doors (Masjid al-Thalathat Abwab), built in 866. This mosque has the oldest decorated facade of any religious building in the world.
Today, only the facade of the Mosque of the Three Doors retains its 9th-century appearance, while the minaret next to it was added in 1440. The gate of the Mosque of the Three Doors consists of three horseshoe arches and features four ancient stone columns. The arch is carved with floral patterns and Kufic calligraphy, which includes verses from the Quran and the name of the builder, Muhammad ibn Khairun. Muhammad ibn Khairun was a scholar and merchant from Andalusia who traveled through Iraq and Egypt to reach Kairouan, Tunisia. When the minaret was added in 1440, the original 9th-century inscriptions were rearranged to make room for the new text.
In the northwest of the Kairouan Medina stands an important tomb for Sidi Sahib, a companion of the Prophet and his barber, which is why it is also called the Barber Mosque.
Legend says Sidi Sahib died in a battle in 654 and was buried here. By the 11th century, this place had become a famous holy site, and the tomb shrine (gongbei) was built in the 14th century. The Bey of Tunis, Hammuda Pasha (reigned 1631-66), expanded the tomb significantly in 1629 and built a new main hall. Another Bey, Mohamed (reigned 1675-96), built the minaret and a religious school (madrasa) between 1690 and 1695. Since the 19th century, the tomb of Sidi Sahib has undergone several renovations, but it still keeps its 17th-century architectural style.
The tomb of Sidi Sahib in Kairouan blends Andalusian, Italian Renaissance, and local Kairouan architectural styles. The interior features many classic 17th-century Tunisian Qallalin tiles and rich plaster carvings.
At the minaret, gate, and main hall of the Sidi Sahib tomb in Kairouan, an old man in the courtyard pours perfume into the hands of every visitor (dosti) who comes to pay their respects.
The Sidi Abid al-Ghariani school (madrasa) and shrine (zawiya) inside the Kairouan Medina were founded in the 14th century and expanded significantly in the 17th century. Abid al-Ghariani was a scholar, and his teacher, Al-Jadidi, was a famous judge in Kairouan. Al-Jadidi passed away in 1384 while on the Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca. Abid al-Ghariani took over his teacher's role to continue teaching in Kairouan, and after he died in 1402, he was buried next to the school.
Besides Abid al-Ghariani, the Hafsid dynasty Caliph Moulay Hasan (reigned 1526-1543) is also buried here. In 1534, the famous pirate Barbarossa led a fleet to invade Tunisia. Moulay Hasan eventually took back Tunisia with the help of the Holy Roman Empire, but he had to sign a treaty to become a vassal of Spain. In 1542, while Moulay Hasan was traveling to Italy to collect weapons and ammunition, his son usurped the throne, and he was eventually exiled. He lived in Naples and Sicily for several years and later met with the Holy Roman Emperor and the Pope, becoming the most well-known Arab monarch to Europeans of that era.
The city walls and gates of the Kairouan Medina.
Kairouan was founded in 670 by the Arab Umayyad general Uqba ibn Nafi, who chose the site to serve as a military base for the Arab conquest of Tunisia. Over the next hundred years, the Berbers launched wave after wave of uprisings against the Arabs. After surviving many attacks, Kairouan was finally captured by the Berbers in 745 and was not retaken until the end of the 8th century.
